Parish Profile of

St. Andrew’s

Episcopal Church

Edwardsville, Illinois

2018

Introduction

St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church has begun asearch process to call our next Rector. We are a mid-sized parish located in Edwardsville, Illinois, a suburbof St. Louis, Missouri. The Parish Profile that followsprovides a sense of the parish and the people whoworship here.

History

St. Andrew’s was established in Edwardsville in1841. The current site on which the church sits hasbeen occupied by the church since 1872. Theoriginal church was razed, but was later rebuilt in1916.

St. Andrew’s: Date Unknown

Church

Interior

2002 Update

In 2002, St. Andrew’s added a much-neededaddition which is connected to the church by acloistered walkway. This addition included a largeparish hall and adjoining kitchen, library, offices,church bell, multiple classrooms for church school,nursery, and prayer room.

By expanding the church facility in this way, thearchitecture of the historic church was preserved.The addition was funded entirely through gifts andincreased pledges.

Centennial Celebration

We recently experienced the 100th anniversaryof the first service in this building. We celebratedour centennial with a special service which wasattended by past parishioners who left Edwardsville,as well as two of St. Andrew’s previous rectors.

Another component of our centennialcelebrations was the large-scale restoration of thechurch’s stained glass windows. Our investmentreflected the commitment of today’s parishioners toSt. Andrew’s history and future.

Who We Are

We believe that our church occupies an importantplace in our community. Our parish prefers atraditional liturgical style. A large percentage ofmembers participate in church activities. Ourenthusiasm and member participation will help uscontinue to grow and prosper.

Who We Are Continued

Demographic Figures 2017

• Average Sunday Attendance: 71

• Easter Sunday Attendance: 1202

• Members who have received Holy Communion at least three times in the preceding year: 145

• Total Church School Students: 18

Worship

The Holy Eucharist iscelebrated on Sundays and daysof special observance. Faithful tothe liturgy within the Book ofCommon Prayer, music (organ)and choir are joined by acongregation of singers in raisingour voices in reverence andworship.

Music is an importantpart of our celebrations and withthe ministries of Acolytes, AltarGuild, and Eucharistic Ministers,Lectors, and Intercessors, weseek to honor our traditions,including the use of Sanctusbells, chanting, and incense.

Below is a link to our 175th Festal Evensong Service: https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=c_3wX54W7sw

Music

The planning and execution ofchoral and instrumental music isoverseen by organist/choirmaster HenryEvans, III, who follows the liturgicalcalendar, giving thoughtful considerationto important events in the life of theparish. From September through May,the choir provides music appropriate tothe various seasons and scriptures. Thechoir and congregation enliven thedelivery of the Gospel through thespirited singing of hymns, canticles, andpsalms.

The music ministry at Saint Andrew’s seeks tosupport the worship of a vibrant, singing, and lovingcongregation.

Henry Evans, IIIOrganist/Choirmaster

Highlights of our musical offerings include adventlessons and carols, the solemn high Eucharist of ChristmasEve, and Easter Vigil. St. Andrew’s holds special musicalevents for the parish and greater community, as well.

Lay Ministries

St. Andrew’s has many active lay ministries. Theseinclude Altar Guild, Flower Guild, the Dame JulianNorwich Prayer Group, and at least a dozen others.

Here is a summary of the Dame Julian of NorwichPrayer Group ministry:

This ministry is using the gift ofintercessory prayer by nine people, of which sevenare currently active. The ministry participants meeton Tuesday morning at 10 a.m. We have a liturgythat we go through and then pray our list ofpeople. On the first Tuesday of every month, aretired priest celebrates a healing Eucharist for us,and all the congregation are welcome.

We use our gifts to pray for those on ourprayer list. We ask parishioners to give us thename of anyone needing prayer for physical,mental, or emotional problems. We also include onour list those of the larger church.

We invite any parishioner to join us and usehis/her gifts.

Fellowship

We have potluck mealsthroughout the year, and ourparishioners spend a greatdeal of time with each otherin church-sponsored socialand outreach groups. We alsohave fun events such as the“Blessing of the Animals” andan annual outdoor service.

Many parishioners areclose friends and spend timewith each other outside ofchurch.

Outreach

St. Andrew’s is blessed by eager support of ourministries and outreach programs. The ministryprograms play a large part in our everyday life andconsist of several distinct areas. Some of our largeroutreach programs are:

• Quilt Guild

• Book Fair

• Relay for Life

Church School

St. Andrew’s is a nurturing, child-centered parishthat recognizes the vital importance of offering a highquality spiritual education to its youth. Church Schooloccurs each week from the beginning of the 10:00 a.m.Sunday Mass until after the homily; it is in sessionbetween Labor Day and Memorial Day.

In an effort to allow for many parishioners toteach in the church school program while stillmaintaining their other ministries, St. Andrew’s utilizes amonth-to-month model in which one individual (orfamily) commits to teaching church school classes for onemonth at a time. The church school maintains unitybetween its curriculum and Sunday services by creatinglessons based upon the same scripture readings from theRevised Common Lectionary. Teachers are encouraged toexercise their creativity and utilize their own particulartalents when planning their classes.

With the guidance of our Rector, the ChurchSchool program will continue to instill a respect forEpiscopal traditions and a love of Christ’s teachingsamong its youngest parishioners.

Church School

Continued

Stewardship

Here is a snapshot of our Stewardship numbers:

• Number of Pledges: 52 (2% increase from 2017)• Average Pledge: $3,342 (nearly 8% increase from

2017).• Total Pledge Amount 2017: $163,446• Total Projected Pledge Amount 2018: $173,780

On top of pledges, we receive a noteworthy amount ofour operating income from gifts, open plate offerings,and revenue from our quarterly book fair.

Where We Are

St. Andrew’s is located in downtownEdwardsville. Edwardsville, a small city of 26,000, isthe third-oldest city in Illinois, incorporated in1818. It is the county seat of Madison County, whosecounty offices and courthouse anchor a bustling MainStreet just a few blocks away. Southern IllinoisUniversity Edwardsville is a vibrant presence in ourcommunity, with more than 14,000 students.

Just to the south, the Village of Glen Carbon isa largely residential community that is also home tofamiliar ‘big-box’ stores and a number ofrestaurants. Most of our congregation call this“Glen/Ed” area and its surrounding communitieshome.

Our community’s school district, District 7, iswidely recognized as one of the best in the state, withoutstanding test scores and enviable sports and artsprograms. Edwardsville is also the hub of an 85-milenetwork of bike trails crisscrossing the region. Andwith St. Louis just 25 miles away, we have readyaccess to all of the cultural, sports, and commercialresources a major metropolitan area can offer.

The Future

Our Goals:

1. Increase opportunities for educational and spiritual growth.

2. Increase our membership.

3. Draw more people into our active ministries by identifying and affirming spiritual gifts.

4. Include more youth and youth programs.

Our Search:

As we progress in our search for a new Rector, we look forward to sharing hopes, dreams and expectations with a Rector who is comfortable and convincing in his or her beliefs. We are hoping to find someone enthusiastic in their ministry, organized, innovative, energized and able to convey God’s message to the congregation.

Our new Rector should help us in empowering the congregation to deepen our own faith and encouraging us to share it with the world. We also feel that looking at life with a sense of humor is a definite asset. We are open to moving out of our “comfort zone” and receptive to clergy with different ideas and strengths

Edwardsville

Photographs